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4.0 Elements and Atoms throughout the ages4.1 The plum pudding atom model of J.J. Thomson4.2 Rutherford Scattering / Planetary model of the atom4.3 The instability of the classic “solar system” model of atoms3.3 Line spectra of elements, Balmer’s numerology and Rydberg’s equation and

constant4.4 The Bohr Model of the Hydrogen Atom4.5.1 Successes 4.5.2 Failures

4.6 Shell structure of atoms, characteristic X-Ray Spectra, Moseley’s fit and it’s support of Bohr’s model

4.7. There are also Auger electrons, not only characteristic X-rays

4.8. quantum jumps in physics and how the general public misunderstands the concept

Sommerfeld, fine structure constant, …

CHAPTER 4Structure of the Atom / Particle nature of matterStructure of the Atom / Particle nature of matter

In the present first part of the paper the mechanism of the binding of electrons by a positive nucleus is discussed in relation to Planck’s theory. It will be shown that it is possible from the point of view taken to account in a simple way for the law of the line spectrum of hydrogen. - Niels Bohr, 1913

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Various atoms and molecules as depicted in John Dalton's ”A New System of Chemical Philosophy” (1808).

Law of constant proportion in chemical reactions, atoms must exist for chemical book keeping reasons

2H2 + O2 -> 2H2O

Various Greek (and Indian) philosophers had only a few elements, concept of an atom that is indivisible smallest unit of any form of matter

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Faraday, 1838:Atoms have “electrical constituents”

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John Joseph Thomson, 1897

Electrons are negatively charged particles that can be “pulled out” of any metal by a strong electric field (the “thingies” pulled out are all identical and have a charge to mass ratio about 2,000 times smaller than hydrogen ions (which we now know to be protons)

Previous chapter

So atoms cannot be indivisible, if not indivisible, they must have some internal structure that is responsible for the physical and chemical properties of the atoms of the various elements

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There is also radioactivity (from 1896 onwards): electrons and other particles, e.g. alpha particles, (we now know nuclei of He, two proton + two neutrons) come out of the atoms of certain elements

end of the second part of this course, nuclear physics

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ibid vol. 34, pp. 591-592, 1911

A. Einstein, “Eine neue Bestimmung der Moleküldimensionen”, Annalen der Physik, vol. 19, pp. 289-306, 1906

Einstein’s PhD thesis and the related 1905 paper, atoms must exist for physical reasons

also start of quantitative nanoscience

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Big questions: What is the true nature of atoms?

What is their internal structure that is responsible for the chemical and physical properties of the atoms of the various chemical elements

Smaller questions (the answers to which will help with the big questions above:

How come there are there characteristic emission and absorption spectra for the elements?

How come there are characteristic X-ray emission spectra for the elements (there are of course also characteristic X-ray absorption spectra

– not part of this course, there are also characteristic γ-ray absorptions and emissions, end of the second part of this course, nuclear physics)

How come …

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Modern Physics

waves or particles?

How come they are characteristic of atoms?

then applications, PH 312

the correct theory of matter at lastJ.J. Thompson (1987) electron

How come we can’t derive this from Maxwellian waves?

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Thomson’s “plum-pudding” model of the atom had the positive charges spread uniformly throughout a sphere the size of the atom, with electrons embedded in the uniform background.

In Thomson’s view, when the atom was heated, the electrons could vibrate about their equilibrium positions, thus producing electromagnetic radiation.

Thomson’s Atomic Model

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What to do? Rutherford’s idea: shoot small but highly energetic probes at atoms, see what happens,

Still done in particle physics today, also Rutherford managed to transform one type of atom into another by shooting at them with α-particles

That is what physicists do, take things apart, figure out what its “internal structure” is, how it works on the basis of this structure

Rutherford himself: “In Science there is only physics, anything else is stamp collecting.” Various versions: ”The only real science is physics, everything else is stamp collecting.”

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Rutherford proposed that an atom has a positively charged core (nucleus) surrounded by the negative electrons.

Rutherford’s Atomic Model

Something three –dimensional where there is a particle nucleus and particle electrons in certain orbits, not correct

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Experiments of Geiger and Marsden Rutherford conceived a new technique

for investigating the structure of matter by scattering particles from atoms.

Marsden and Geiger showed that a few particles were scattered from thin gold-leaf targets at backward angles greater than 90°.

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No experiments for Z = 60 (Neodymium) as it is rare and cannot easily beaten into very thin foils as the crystal structure is hexagonal close-packed, but Ag (Z = 47) and Au, Cu, and Al all can, because they are cubic densest packed

Experimental rule, change only one thing at a time

This will be important for Max Born’s interpretation of the wave function

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Scattering experiments help us study matter too small to be observed directly.

There is a relationship between the impact parameter b and the scattering angle θ.

When b is small,

r gets small.

Coulomb force gets large.

θ can be large and the particle can be repelled backward.

4.2: Rutherford Scattering

In accelerators, kinetic energy K needs to be relativistic

Z1 and Z2 are the repulsive charges in units of the elemental charge e

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Impact parameter b gets expanded into a circular area πb02 which is called

cross section.

cross section σ = πb2 enters into relation for probability for a particle being scattered by a nucleus

Anything within a cross section area will be scattered to angles larger than θ0 .

Rutherford Scattering

with n number of scattering nuclei per unit area and t thickness of the target foil

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In actual experiment a detector is positioned from θto θ+ dθ that corresponds to incident particles between b and b + db.

The number of particles scattered per unit area is

Rutherford Scattering Equation

Where Ni is total number of incident particles, K again kinetic energy, r the angular widths of the detector

4.16

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with k = 1/4π ε0

Shooting with the toughest bullets at the weakest target, Rutherford’s scattering theory broke down, this means the underlying assumptions are no longer valid, from that one can determine the size of the nucleolus, still done today for other particles in particle accelerators

Order of magnitude correct !!!

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1908 Nobel prize in chemistry to Ernest Rutherford (later Lord Rutherford of Nelson after the town where he was born in New Zealand) and the physical chemist Frederic Soddy, both at McGill University in Canada

for the radioactive transmutation of chemical elements

"The energy produced by the breaking down of the atom is a very poor kind of thing. Anyone who expects a source of power from the transformation of these atoms is talking moonshine." – 1933

"All science is either physics or stamp collecting" 

"If your experiment needs statistics, you ought to have done a better experiment."

"An alleged scientific discovery has no merit unless it can be explained to a barmaid."

the alchemists’ dreams realized by the middle of the last century, Glenn Seaborg has produced several thousand atoms of gold from bismuth, but at a net loss.

14N + α → 17O + p. 1917-1919 but that stable isotope of oxygen was not identified until the 1930s

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4.3: The Classical/solar system Atomic Model is doomed

where v is the tangential velocity of the electron.

Circular motion is accelerated, accelerated charges need to radiate energy off according to Maxwell, loosing kinetic energy

For the centripetal force in a circular orbit

Let’s consider atoms as a quasi sun/planet model (only one planet so that it is just a two body problem.The force balance of circular orbits for an electron “going around” a stationary nucleolus

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Other weaknesses:

(1) gravity in the solar system is attractive, if there is more than one electron in an atom, they will repel each other.

(2) most importantly: if two solar system atom models were to “collide”, they would form a “molecule model”, but when that “molecule model” is broken up, there is no physics that would ensure that the original “solar system atom models would be obtained again.

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If the material is very dilute there are discrete spectra: Ångstrom (~ 1860)

There is typically more emission lines than absorption lines, explanation later on when we understand atoms

Very dense material, i.e. hot “black body”, big- bang background radiation, sun if one does not look too carefully

For every absorption line, there is an emission line, but typically not the other way around

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last chapter, we learned more about the nature of light

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This chapter: a reasonable model of an atom needs to explain these lines

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Absorption spectra, light of certain wavelengths is taken out of the “quasi black body spectrum of the sun, the glass prism provides a limited dispersion so that the emission lines from the excited atoms in the sun are not visible

It is typically only transition from the ground state to higher states that are missing, so it is only a few

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Optical Spectrometer and emission spectra

Spectroscopy can be done very precisely, in fact so precisely that isotopes of hydrogen, Deuterium was discovered that way in 1932, (later on also Tritium)

Much depends on the quality of the grating …spectroscopic measurements can be very precise, one can distinguish between isotopes of hydrogen

gasses in tubes are typically quite dilute, discrete spectra

where d is “line spacing on the diffraction grating”

Note that there is a high voltage rather than a couple of volts as in the Frank- Hertz experiment

If highly excitated due to high tension, there are many different transitions downwards, so typically more emission lines than absorption lines

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Balmer Series

In 1885, Johann Balmer found an empirical formula for wavelengths of the emission spectrum for hydrogen in nm within the visible range

nm (where k = 3,4,5…)

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Rydberg Equation As more scientists discovered emission lines at infrared and ultraviolet

wavelengths, the Balmer series equation was extended to the Rydberg equation, actually on the basis of this equation, people went out looking for more lines :

Can be applied to isotopes of hydrogen by modifying R slightly

Rm

Re

H

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2

_1009737.1

2

m

h

cmR e

with μ as reduced mass of the elecron, α as fine structure constant, and M mass of the nucleus

Mm

Mm

e

e

Aside:

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4.4: The Bohr Model of the Hydrogen AtomNiels Bohr’s general assumptions:

1) “Stationary states” (orbiting electron does not radiate energy) exist in the hydrogen atom.

2) E = E1 − E2 = hf

3) Classical laws of physics do not apply to transitions between stationary states, the electron just “jumps” makes a “quantum leap”

4) Angular momentum is quantized in units of h/2π , in the future simply called h-bar

5) One form of the correspondence principle, at very high quantum numbers (the indices in (2)) binding energies become so low that transitions between stationary states can be achieved without us noticing their discrete quantum nature, energy changes seem to be continuous again

Nota Bene: All of these assumptions are consistent with the assumption that the electron is a classical particle, as supported by J.J. Thomson’s experiments and the rest of classical physics

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without k

new physics

r

r rdFUU

bound system

rm

nv

e

quantized condition for tangential

velocity and radius of orbit

rm

ev

e04

rm

e

rm

n

ee 04

has to be the same as this r from classical force balance, allows us to resolve for quantized energy levels, perhaps some later homework or quiz question

just classical physics, not good enough

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Is diameter of the hydrogen atom for stationary states, n = 1, 2, 3, …

The smallest diameter of the hydrogen atom is two times the Bohr radius ≈ 1 Å = 0.1 nm

n = 1 gives its lowest energy state (called the “ground” state), there is formally no E0

since quantum numbers start with 1 and are positive integers

But some books may call it E0 nevertheless, E1 is also called 1 Rydberg, needs to be divided by h and c in order to get the Rydberg constant in m-1

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Transitions in the Hydrogen AtomLyman series

The atom will remain in the excited state for a short time before emitting a photon and returning to a lower stationary state. Most hydrogen atoms exist in n = 1 at room temperature.

Balmer series (of formula fame)

When sunlight passes through the atmosphere, hydrogen atoms in water vapor absorb the wavelengths (visible), seen as dark lines in absorption spectrum.

From previous slide

E = E1 − E2 = hf

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No need for special relativity / Fine Structure Constant

The electron’s velocity in the Bohr model: For any state, n = 1, 2, ..

v1 = 2.2 × 106 m/s ~ less than 1% of the speed of light. In any other orbit, there is less kinetic energy, i.e. the

electron needs to move even slower than that There is no need to use special relativity The ratio of v1 to c is known as fine structure constant.

It is dimension less, so other creatures in distant galaxies will have it as well (will have the very same numerical value for it) !!

α was actually introduced by Arnold Sommerfeld (nominated 81 times for Nobel prize, didn’t win but died in a car accident) in his attempt to explain spectral line doublets by elliptical electron orbits, confirmation of his theory, just fortuitous, as his physics is as wrong as Bohr’s

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discrete Hydrogen Atom Energy levels (after all it’s a bound system) The energies of the stationary states

where E0 = E1 = 13.6 eV (negative by itself). Ground state energy Emission of light occurs when the atom is in

an excited state and de-excites to a lower energy state (nu → nℓ).

where f is the frequency of a photon.

R∞ is the Rydberg constant for a hypothetical nucleolus that is so heavy that it remains stationary while the electron moves around it, note that R∞ is a model concept calculated from Bohr’s model

Something negative minus something even more negative is positive

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200

2

8 ha

eR

From Bohr’s model

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2

_1009737.1

2

m

h

cmR e

c

e

0

2

4

2

20

0

4

ema

e

BUT Rydberg’s constant from high precision experiment RH, very close but not exactly the same, how come?

with μ as reduced electron mass and M as mass of the nucleus, in case of standard hydrogen it’s just a proton, in case of deuterium a proton and a neutron (beware binding energy) in case of tritium a proton and two neutrons (again beware of binding energy) (how come? Special relativity says so!)

from Sommerfeld model

To resolve:

Mm

Mm

e

ee

Rm

Re

eH

mass of nucleus of one atom of deuterium (2.0141102 u) is less than an isolated proton (1.007825 u and an isolated neutron (1.008665 u) added together (the rest is 2.224 MeV binding energy)

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The electron and hydrogen nucleus actually revolved about their mutual center of mass.

The electron mass is replaced by its reduced mass.

The Rydberg constant for infinite nuclear mass is replaced by RH

for hydrogen, RD for deuterium, RT for tritium .

See also earlier slide where we used α

All three hydrogen isotopes have a slightly different R, one can tell them apart by precision measurements of the spectral lines

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Correspondence Principle specific for hydrogen atom

The frequency of the radiation emitted fclassical is equal to the orbital frequency forb of the electron around the nucleus.

The frequency of the transition from n + 1 to n is

For very large n only,

Substitute E0:

From this idea he actually figures angular momentum needs to be quantized in units of for the mathematics to work out

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Correspondence Principle in general

Need a principle to relate the new modern results with classical ones.

Classical electrodynamics Bohr’s atomic model

Determine the properties of radiation

Bohr’s correspondence principle

In the limits where classical and quantum theories should agree, the quantum theory must reduce the classical result. That limit is quantum leaps between very lightly bound electron states (very high quantum numbers)

+

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Limitations of the Bohr ModelThe Bohr model was a great step towards a quantum theory of matter, explained

the spectral lines of hydrogen comprehensively but it had its limitations.

1) Works only for single-electron atoms and ions that have a single electron left. Only modification in all equations Ze instead of e, where Z is the number of positive charges in the nucleus

2) Could neither account for the intensities nor the fine structure of the spectral lines (they are actually doublets) for hydrogen when atoms were put into magnetic fields (Nobel prize to Lorentz and Zeeman 1902)

3) Could not explain the binding of atoms into molecules

4) Contained unexplained quantum jumps – that’s not good physics, just a step in the right direction, i.e. energy and many other physical entities in bound systems need to be quantized

The reason for all of this is that the model is build on the basis of the particle nature of matter.

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Within the three paper series by Niels Bohr in 1913, idea that electrons in other atoms are arranged in shells with lots of empty space between then, essentially correct

None of this is correct

222 111

ul nnRZ

200

2

8 ha

eR

Because we have e2 in both E0 and the Rydberg constant

Unexpected lines in the sun’s spectrum were identified to be He+ (which also has isotopes, i.e. different effective mass corrections

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2

nEZEn

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4.6: Characteristic X-Ray Spectra and Atomic Number beyond hydrogen and one electron cations

Shells have letter names:

K shell for n = 1

L shell for n = 2

The atom is most stable in its ground state.

When it occurs in a muti-electron atom, radiation is emitted as an X ray photon.

It has the energy E (x ray) = Eu − Eℓ.

An electron from higher shells will fill an inner-shell vacancy at lower energy, when that vacancy has been created by a sufficiently energetic process in the first place

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Atomic Number Z

L shell to K shell Kα x ray

M shell to K shell Kβ x ray

Atomic number Z = number of protons in the nucleus. Moseley found relationships between the frequencies of the

characteristic x ray and Z.

This holds for the Kα x ray.

41Now with Bohr’s models, we have a “reasonable” theory of matter (atoms) that can to some extend explain this peculiar behavior !!

Because of its high intensity, it makes sense to use only Kα X-rays (nearly monochromatic) for X-ray crystallography

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Moseley’s Empirical Results The most intense Kα X-ray is produced by transition from n = 2 to n = 1

Moseley’s research clarified the importance of the electron shells for all the elements, not just for hydrogen.

For a vacancy in the K shell to be filled by an electron from the L shell (and assuming that two electrons can occupy the K shell at most), the electron that “jumps down” sees the nuclear charge reduced (shielded) by the 1 remaining electron

valid for whole K series, R is again Rydberg’s constant, as this is a “modified Rydberg equation”, which can be explained on the basis of the Bohr shell model of multi-electron atoms and the idea of shielding by a single remaining electron in the K shell

43empirically

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There are also other processes, emission of Auger electrons to reduce an exited atoms energy, again what we detect is quantized energy levels in bound systems, these spectra test the energy of the outermost electrons, so are sensitive to the valence in compounds, ultra clean surfaces, i.e. ultra high vacuum is required

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particularly important for Kα

lines, then b = 1

Better to call it E1

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1,000,000,016,640, one trillion, sixteen thousand six hundred and forty Pennies [one cube measuring 273 x 273 x 273 feet ]

http://www.kokogiak.com/megapenny/fourteen.asp

the “war on terror” has cost about $1 trillion so far, but as wars go that one accounts only for a few % of the annual GDP since 9/11

A real quantum jump would be adding or taking away one penny from such a cube

http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RS22926.pdf

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A real quantum jump would be adding or taking away one penny from such a cube

http://www.kokogiak.com/megapenny/seventeen.asp

1,000,067,088,384,000, One quadrillion, sixty-seven billion, eighty-eight million,three hundred and eighty-four thousand Pennies, [ One cube measuring 2,730 x 2,730 x 2,730 feet ]

Sure “quantum jumps” in macroeconomic and “bankstering” are not based on the quantum jumps physicists, other natural scientists, and engineers are talking about

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$1 million

$100,000

other cubic stacks of pennies, always remember what a quantum jump really is, Francis Scott Fitzgerald to Ernest Hemmingway: “the rich are different from you and me”